Fool Me Once
by Nerwen Aldarion
Summary: Lisbon calls Jane to help her with a serial killer in Los Angeles that reunites them. As Jane struggles to put aside his scars that destroyed his relationship with Lisbon, a twist in the case exposes them once more as an old villain returns. Jisbon
1. The Phone Call

Disclaimer: I'm a poor grad student, I can't afford anything

A/N: hey guys, this is illicit. I'm supposed to working on my project on the development of the occipital bone but I did this instead. Oh well. I hope you like this, the two previous fics "Say Something" and "Not Ready Yet" were precursors to this one. It would be good to catch up on those before reading this but I think everyone will enjoy where this goes.

Special thanks to waterbaby and Steele Simz for keeping me motivated and encouraging me. I love them

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><p>Fool Me Once<p>

Chapter 1: The Phone Call

_Local Couple Slain_ screamed the headline in the _Los Angeles Times_; it was impossible for Lisbon to miss. Underneath the headline was a larger photograph of the victims, a married couple from the upper crust of the social scene in Los Angeles, oh yes the public would be crying out for justice and fast. But this wasn't her case, not yet at least. The local police and the new CBI would have control of the case until they determined that they needed assistance from the FBI. And with the details of the case pointing towards a real sick individual, Lisbon couldn't help but keep checking her phone. She was waiting for that phone call.

Lisbon knew what it was like to be one of them, she knew that it was difficult to ask for help, even more so when the help came whether they asked for it or not. That was why she never barged in on a case, she waited patiently until she had jurisdiction or was asked. Sometimes her patience was tested.

But there was a myriad of paperwork for her to catch up on as well as several other cases to supervise. She had several teams working on different operations; she shouldn't even be focusing on a case that wasn't hers yet. Except she was the best detective in the state to deal with pyschopaths and she couldn't help but feel like there was more to this then she was getting.

So she kept trying to work while ignoring the voices in her head urging her to be proactive and make the call first, damn her principles. A distraction did come eventually, walking in on heels wearing a tight white blouse and khaki shorts that barely counted as clothing, her apron didn't do much to help cover up and the matching visor only added to the ridiculous ensemble. "Please tell me you want to get some food, I'd kill for a pizza." Agent Lena Copewell said, flopping onto the chair in Lisbon's office.

Lisbon couldn't help but stare at her friend. "I'm not sure, it seems like you should be asking me if I want fries with that?"

"Very funny," Lena replied, "Wilder already asked me if I could 'take his order' because he had a 'footlong' to show me." She rolled her eyes, "Probably more like three inches."

"I'm going to pretend I didn't hear that conversation," Lisbon said, "that still doesn't explain why you are wearing the McDonald's uniform from a _Playboy_ cover spread."

Lena looked down at her outfit and shrugged. "Someone is using the fastfood chain as a cover for drug trafficking, the guy has a weakness for girls, you should have seen him when I applied for the job."

"I can imagine," Lisbon said wryly. Lena Copewell was an interesting enigma, tall with coppery brown hair and long tan legs, she could have been a runway model if she'd wanted to. Her specialty was putting on different roles; in another life she would have been an actress. But as the only daughter of an army colonel she got a taste for fighting her own battles, so she became an FBI agent with a specialty for undercover work, this way she got to actually beat up the bad guys.

"So, pizza?"

"I'd have thought you'd have enough fast food."

"That's why I'm not wanting a burger and fries."

Lisbon laughed. "How about deli? That way I don't feel guilty and you can fit back into those shorts tomorrow."

"Hey, you know I can eat a whole pizza and still wear these," Lena said, slapping her hip for emphasis.

"Yes, and that is why I hate you."

It was Lena's turn to laugh. "Fine, deli sandwiches it is."

"And you have to change," Lisbon replied, "No way am I walking out of here with you looking like a fast food hooker."

"Might get our meal for free."

Lisbon shook her head. "Not going to happen."

"You're Alex's mom, not mine." Lena reminded her but smiled, "But I hate these shoes enough to do as you say." That caused another eye roll from Lisbon who looked down at her phone again. Unfortunately Lena noticed. "Waiting for a call?"

"Something like that," she admitted, still staring at her phone.

"One of your exes?"

Now Lisbon turned to her friend with an annoyed look. "_No_."

Lena grinned, pleased that she'd gotten the best of her at the moment. "Well if it isn't about your bad taste in men, what is it?"

She wasn't sure if she should tell Lena, especially after the teasing she'd gotten. But this woman was a good friend and she understood her frustrations with the job. "It's the Thomson case that's in the headlines."

"Yeah, I saw it, everyone is talking about it."

"The guy who did this is going to be tough to catch," Lisbon pointed out.

"Has LAPD or the CBI asked for help?"

"Not yet," She admitted, "that's what I'm waiting for."

Lena shrugged. "Give them time, they want to give it their best shot first."

"Yeah," she said but didn't quite agree. Lisbon couldn't shake the feeling that there was more, something big was happening; it didn't make sense for a killer to escalate so quickly. What were the police hiding this time?

"Come on," Lena said standing up. "Let's go get some lunch, I'm starved."

So Lisbon pasted on a smile and gathered her things to follow out of the door. The phone would wait, for now she would just go on with her life.

* * *

><p>Life did go on for Lisbon and she stood by the rule she'd set years ago, her job stopped once she left the building. That was a recent rule but it was important, she was no longer just Agent Teresa Lisbon anymore. That was why she was completely relaxed and happy as she picked her daughter up from daycare, never let it be said she was an agent before a mother.<p>

Alex was always happy to see her mom, she chattered away about her day, her friends at daycare and whatever else struck her interest. She was certainly a happy girl, easygoing and precocious, it was as if her single desire was to please everyone around her, a lot like her mother in that regard.

There was no thinking about the horrors of her job, not while she was with her daughter, her innocence could not be touched by something so tragic, not yet at least. In some ways it was exhilarating to finally have a reason to let it all go when she left the building, she slept better at night because she wouldn't allow herself to dwell on the cases she was working on or the pain she had seen that day.

So her evening was spent playing with her daughter in the living room and then preparing her dinner. Lisbon listened to Alex talk about anything she wanted and it was wonderful to feel all of the stress leave her completely. There was no doubt that being a mother had changed her for the better.

Lisbon was cleaning up the dishes when her cell phone finally rang, but Lisbon knew it wasn't the phone call she'd been waiting all day for. No, this was another one entirely.

"Hey, Jane," she said as she answered it, "How are things going in Austin?"

"A lot more interesting then in L.A."

For once she doubted that. "Yeah? I did hear something about a state senator, apparently you faked an aid's death to get him to confess?"

"It wasn't that severe."

"Right, so the reports that you had Cho pretend to shoot her and then get him to help 'hide the body' were just imaginations run wild?"

"It had to be done, he was sleeping with her and then killed the guard to cover it up."

Lisbon laughed. "I'm sure Abbott was ready to kill you for that stunt."

"Close to it."

"I'll bet, not sure I would have been able to resist myself if I'd been there."

"Oh you would have, you just would have hit me instead."

She laughed again. "You're probably right."

The conversation hit a slight lull once the laughter faded and Jane took that opportunity to change the subject. "How are you?"

"I'm good, busy, got an interesting case in the works," she admitted, "but nothing that is as exciting as a lawsuit from a senator."

"Good, and Alex?"

"Is that my cue to hand her the phone?"

"Only if you don't mind."

That made her grin and she put the phone down. "Alex!" she called out and walked into the living room where her daughter was playing. "Daddy is on the phone and he wants to talk to you."

Alex had known of course, Daddy always called at the same time every week, no matter what he was doing and that was the truth. One time he had called her when he was sitting in the car in the middle of a stakeout. But she still dropped everything she was doing to make a dash for the phone. "Hi, Daddy!" She said happily once she put the phone to her ear. "I'm good," she said answering his question.

Lisbon pretended to be preoccupied with finishing cleaning the kitchen but all the time she had one ear listening in on the conversation between Jane and their daughter. Mostly it revolved around Alex chattering about her life, her friends at daycare, the gymnastics class she was in and a birthday party she would be going to in a few weeks. There was never anything bad about these phone calls except for a recent tradition that had started popping up towards the end. And sure enough, it happened.

"Daddy, when can I see you?" Alex pleaded softly. "Will you come see me soon?" She waited dutifully for his answer and then tried another way. "Can I go see you?" Another response. "But why? Please, Daddy, please." Another pause. "When? …Okay, goodbye, Daddy."

Alex handed the phone back to her mother, not quite her cheerful self now. Lisbon sighed and put the phone back to her ear. "She's upset again isn't she?" Jane asked.

"Yep," Lisbon replied, not even bothering to sugar coat it.

He sighed now too. "You should go cheer her up."

"I'll do that," she agreed. She wasn't even being passive aggressive, just accepted what she had to do in the circumstances.

"Just remind her that I love her."

"She knows, you tell her and I tell her," Lisbon said, "But sometimes words aren't enough."

"Just tell her."

"I will," Lisbon replied. "Good bye, Jane."

"Good bye, Lisbon."

She hung up the phone and closed her eyes for a moment, making yet another wish that things could have been different. Then she put the phone away and set off to do what she'd said she would.

Alex had crept up to her room after the phone call and Lisbon found her playing with her dollhouse. Or more specifically, the dollhouse Jane had purchased for her last birthday. The dollhouse itself was a work of art, no doubt custom made. It had three stories, a wrap around porch with an attached gazebo, another porch on the third floor and two gables. That wasn't even mentioning the inside, which had a curved staircase; a dining room with a chandelier and to top it all off the house actually had electric lighting! The furniture had all been included, all miniature versions of classic beautiful furniture that Lisbon wished she could own.

Then there were the dolls. Three dolls that were tiny versions of them, one for Alex, another for her mother and a third of him. Her doll had come with tiny handcuffs! It had been extravagant and unbelievable…but Alex had adored it.

The gifts had started when she was born; he'd gotten a silver shoe with her name, date of birth, birth weight and height engraved on it. Lisbon had it sitting on a high shelf because she knew that thing was outrageously expensive. Then there was the life-sized baby giraffe for her first birthday, that thing took up a good chunk of floor space but was still Alex's favorite place to sit and read. Last year it had been genuine porcelain tea set with a table, four chairs, all hand carved and real lace table clothes. Lisbon liked to joke that if her house ever got robbed the thieves would bypass all of the electronics and just raid Alex's room to make a killing…and it was the truth.

The birthday and Christmas gifts were beautiful, personal and touching…but they didn't make up for the fact that he had never once seen her face when she opened them. Lisbon knew that Alex would probably trade all of the gifts for her father to come and see her. It was why she always played with the dollhouse after the phone calls; it was simply a way to stay connected to him.

Lisbon sat down on the carpet next to Alex and put on a fake smile. "What are you doing, baby?"

"Nothing," Alex said, her voice was filled with sadness. She had two dolls in her hand, the one that represented herself and the one that was her mother.

"Where's the daddy?"

"Away."

Well it was hard to blame her for that choice. "Alex," Lisbon said softly, "You know your daddy loves you."

"Then why does he stay away?"

"Because it isn't easy for him to be a daddy," Lisbon told her, "He's sad, his family died and it broke him. He thinks he won't hurt you as much if he stays away."

"Why?"

"Because he hurt me a lot," Lisbon reminded her, "he did and he doesn't want to hurt you too."

"Why was he bad to you?"

Boy she could write a book trying to answer that question. "Because he made a lot mistakes and bad choices."

Alex thought about that for a moment before meeting her mother's eyes. "Will he do that again?"

Lisbon studied her daughter, her smart little girl who saw far too much, no question where that came from. "I don't think so," she admitted, "But, Daddy has to believe in himself first and that might be the hardest thing he has ever done."

"I believe in him."

She smiled and hugged her daughter close. "I do too…and someday I think he will."

* * *

><p>The next day Lisbon was at her desk doing the exact same routine as she had done the previous day but this time she was finally rewarded with the long anticipated phone call. It was Agent Rothman of the CBI who wanted to meet with her about the case. She gladly agreed to that arrangement and waited for the anticipated meeting, finally she could get somewhere with this case.<p>

Agent Rothman looked grim when he finally arrived, along with another man who introduced himself as Detective Chase. She knew they weren't exactly happy to be there, no one liked admitting that they needed help, but they were smart enough to know when they were in over their heads. She smiled at them appreciatively, "I'm happy to help you with this case," she told them. Yes, she would be taking the lead but she wanted them to know that they would still play a part. She wasn't going to take it away from them.

"I'm sure you can read from the reports that this is a pretty intense case," Rothman said.

"The newspapers have hinted that it was a rather gruesome death."

"You have no idea." He handed her the case file and she opened it to get her first taste of what this case would bring, and even she hadn't been prepared for it.

She hadn't seen anything like it.

The first picture showed Jason Winters lying on a child sized bed, he had been cut at the waist, his lower limbs no where to be found. Blood had spread all over the bed and dripped down to the floor. The coroner's report stated he had died from blood loss; he'd been alive when his legs were cut off and slowly died from those wounds.

The next was of his wife, Hannah. She was on a bed as well but this one was huge, it engulfed the small woman completely. But this was no ordinary bed; her feet and arms were tied to bedposts with strong nylon ropes for rock climbing. There was a crank at the foot of the bed and the ropes were pulled tight. The report stated that the crank tugged on the ropes, stretching her limbs inch by inch until her bones were dislocated, her muscle fibers snapped and eventually she died as her limbs were torn off.

Dear God what monster had done this?

"There is something else," Rothman said and pointed to a photograph in the file, "this was found displayed with the bodies."

It was a simple white card with a red lower case 'g' printed on it. Nothing more.

"Do you know what it means?" she asked.

"No," he told her, "but it hasn't been released to the public, we don't want to start a panic."

"A panic?"

"Agent Lisbon…this isn't the only scene we've found this at."

That startled her and it was made even more horrific as two more files were placed before her. The first was a name she recognized from the papers a couple of months ago, Angelica Marsh was found in a spring outside the city. What she hadn't heard was that Angelica had been dragged to death but something, possibly a bull if the hair fibers were correct. Her mutilated body had been dumped in the spring, along with the 'g' calling card.

The third was Jason Fletcher, found killed in his home. He had an arrow through his heart, an arrow tipped with a sprig of mistletoe to be exact and the 'g' was left by his body.

Four gruesome deaths, different people, ages, statuses, and methods of execution. The only similarity between them was the card with the letter 'g' on it.

Now she understood why the police had kept it a secret, no one wanted the public to know that there was a serial killer prowling the streets of Los Angeles.

* * *

><p>Time could pass but some cases would bring it screaming back. A seven-year-old girl was kidnapped and the FBI had been brought in to find her. They had, just a few hours too late. It was always devastating and catching the killer wasn't much comfort either. The mood was somber in Austin and the only thing that could conceivably ease the pain was strong liquor. Jane was tempted to partake in that traditional elixir but he also knew that doing so would only lead to more problems in the future.<p>

But he didn't, instead he sat still on his couch and just let the events wash over him. Pain deserved to be felt sometimes.

He saw others leave slowly, weighted down by the sadness as well. Cho was one his way out himself but he stopped at Jane's couch. He was silent for a beat before finally telling him, "You should call your kid."

He was surprised by that comment, more than he should have been. "I called her on Wednesday."

"Call her again."

"She is probably asleep." Jane said, it wasn't necessarily true since the time difference meant there was a chance but it was a reasonable excuse.

Cho didn't buy it though. "I think Lisbon would be okay with it."

Jane sighed and shook his head. "It's not going to happen, Cho." Abbott was usually the worst offender in trying to push Jane into being more than what he was currently, but even Cho had his moments where he tried to do the same, like now.

"This hit all of us, don't pretend it doesn't bother you. Call your kid, you'll feel better."

"Why would waking her up from her pleasant dreams make me feel better? I know she's fine. I don't need to disturb her or Lisbon unnecessarily to know that."

Cho shook his head. "I don't get you, you have something great and you just let it slip away."

"Why does it matter to you?"

"Because despite what an utter jackass you are I consider you a friend and you need to hear the truth."

"What truth would that be, Cho?"

"You're an idiot."

"Thanks for the newsflash." Jane said dismissively.

Cho stared at him for a moment, before walking away while shaking his head. He never would understand Jane's mind, especially not in this situation. Of course, Jane didn't really understand it either anymore. Everyday that clear line was getting blurrier and blurrier to the point where he wondered why he'd set it in the first place.

Jane didn't stick around much longer after Cho left. He headed for the only home he had but it was a stretch even for him to call it that these days. The trailer was much the same, large enough for one and small enough to make him feel even lonelier than usual. Once inside he sat on the edge of his bed for a long moment, letting the silence eat at him.

He remembered those parents, their grief as Abbott explained that their daughter was never going to come back. He hadn't wanted to be there, had tried to avoid it, but even being far away he had seen them collapse in their grief. He knew that pain all to well. There was no comfort for something like that; just time, but even time couldn't heal everything. He'd learned that lesson years ago, those wounds have a nasty way of opening up all over again when you least expect it.

Jane reached over to the drawer of the nightstand; he pulled out a stack of glossy photographs that were probably his most prized possessions these days. Lisbon had started sending him photographs of Alex after she left Austin, usually Christmas cards but sometimes she would just send some favorite snapshots. He'd gotten more in the recent years, no doubt a result of him calling weekly. It was a benefit that he hadn't expected but appreciated.

There was Alex's first Christmas, she was wearing a little Santa hat and popping out of a wrapped box. Lisbon had really gone overboard that year, no doubt an attempt to sell her brothers that her life was actually normal. He knew it had failed but at least she'd made an adorable picture. There was her first birthday, her face and hands covered in cake but she had a big smile. One of her standing in the backyard, a finger in her mouth looking very serious.

She got progressively older, getting more and more animated with the camera. The most recent was from a photography studio but he loved it, Lisbon and her daughter both lying on the floor resting their chins in their hands and their feet sticking up from their bent knees. They were both laughing and looking so much alike, identical poses between mother and daughter. They looked so happy together, just like it should be.

Things had changed for him in the last couple of years, he found himself longing for more instead of wishing to stay away. But it wasn't as simple as just giving in. It had taken him twelve years to finally get to that point with Lisbon and that had fallen apart relatively quickly. He didn't know what surprises would pop up again, what could destroy him once more.

The truth was it was frightening, the idea of even moving on and being a father again. He'd failed once before, it was likely he would fail again. The only thing he'd truly succeeded at was hurting the people he loved. So perhaps it was best to stay away, at least for Alex's sake.

Even if he was beginning to hate that idea.

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><p>Lisbon felt like she was getting nowhere, probably because that is exactly what was happening. Usually serial killers had a pattern, a type. Even Red John had had one, young women that he posed underneath his signature, the times he'd deviated had always been for personal reasons. Ted Bundy had a type, so had Daumer, Gacy and Jack the Ripper.<p>

But not this guy.

He had men, women, couples, young and old. And there was no similar method, one was cut to pieces, another stretched until broken, a third shot with an arrow and a fourth literally dragged until killed. Not one had been murdered in the same manner and the only thing that connected the murders was the calling card with the letter 'g'.

But Lisbon wasn't willing to admit defeat, there was something there, something obvious that was staring at her in the face. If Jane were here he would know but he wasn't so she was going to solve this one.

She stared at the photograph of the dead couple and frowned at it. What would Jane say if he had a look at this? She spotted the painting of the sea in the background. _Well, _she thought, _he'd say that was a really bad imitation of Monet._

She was still looking at the photos when Lena walked in, her heels clicking on the floor. "You know what they say when the pictures talk back to you right?"

Lisbon smiled ruefully. "That it's time to get some sleep."

"Bingo."

She laughed and looked up at her friend. Lena was now sporting a light pink micro mini skirt and a pink and green camo skintight t-shirt. "Nice outfit."

Lena grinned. "Drug dealer and I had a date tonight, got cut short when he took me to the warehouse to meet with a guy first, we arrested them both."

"Good, then that means you didn't dress like a white trash slut for nothing."

She rolled her eyes and stepped over to Lisbon's desk. "What have we got here?" Lena peered at the photos, a miracle that her boobs didn't pop out of her shirt. "Ugh, this guys a sicko."

"That's one way to put it," Lisbon said.

"What do you know?"

"That he has come up with inventive ways to kill people," she replied, "other than that…nothing."

"You're not telling the great Agent Teresa Lisbon, the one who caught Red John, is stumped?"

"I didn't catch Red John," Lisbon corrected her, "My _team_ caught him, or rather found him out and then he was killed." She omitted the part that Jane killed him, everyone knew that and it didn't need to be said. "And I'm not admitting defeat, I'll figure this out. It'll just take time."

Lena shrugged. "You need help?"

"No," Lisbon said, "But if I do I'll get it."

Her friend waited for a minute, as if she might change her mind, then she patted Lisbon on the shoulder and left her to finish her job. She watched Lena go, feeling grateful for her friend and sad that it wasn't as simple as it used to be. Years ago she'd had a team, a team that worked together. Now she was the boss and dictating what other teams did…she didn't have a team of her own and she wasn't a part of one. She missed that.

Lisbon studied the photos until it was time to go and this time she was really tempted to break her own rules and bring the files home with her. She almost did but the idea of Alex somehow stumbling upon them made her think twice. Instead she left them on her desk to be looked at in the morning. It was time to stop being agent and be a mother again.

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

It was four thirty in the morning when Lisbon's cell phone went off. She knew immediately it wasn't good news even before she found out it was Agent Rothman on the phone.

"We have another one."

Alex was left safely at home with her emergency babysitter that was the sweet old lady who lived next door. She might feed chocolate chip cookies to her daughter for breakfast but that was something Lisbon was willing to put up with in the middle of an emergency.

She sped to BrightonHills, a new neighborhood for the affluent, flashing her badge and lights anytime someone tried to cut her off. The guys at the gate let her through right away; a conga line of police cruisers was going in with her.

The house with everyone in front of it was the one she was heading to. Rothman was waiting outside and he looked pretty grim, the sun just starting to peek over the horizon and turning the sky a shell pink.

"It's bad," he told her, "you might want to make sure you hold on to your breakfast."

Lisbon wondered about that as she saw one uniformed man run out of the house and start vomiting into the bushes. As she went into the house she saw others looking shell shocked, grown men quivering in absolute terror and one sobbing woman being held up by another officer.

It seemed like every other scene she'd been at before, until she made it to the bedroom.

One officer shook his head, his face completely white. "I'm not going in there again, never ever again." He repeated over and over as he rushed away. That was her first clue that this wasn't going to be something she'd ever seen before.

She was right.

The smell of blood hit her first, strong and pungent. But she quickly stopped smelling it when she stopped breathing as her eyes took in the sight.

The man was lying propped up against the footboard of the bed, the bloodstained sheet in front of him. His back was to the door, but no one could even imagine look past to see his face. His entire back was cut out, exposing his ribs. The ribs of his back had been severed and pulled back, bent at an angle to form curved bloody spikes. Then there was a flimsy shiny tissue pulled back over them, spread out to form…wings. Bloody wings that dripped red onto the floor.

"Dear God," she gasped.

Rothman nodded. "Doc says the guy pulled his lungs out of his back, his fucking lungs!"

She shook her head. "I…I've never seen anything like this."

She couldn't tear her eyes away from the gruesome sight, a man spread out naked with his lungs behind him like a macabre angel…or a fallen Lucifer.

Lisbon took a step back. "I…I need to step outside.

Rothman grabbed her arm. "Wait…we need your help!"

She met his eyes. "Yes, help." But she wasn't thinking, she couldn't erase that awful visage from her mind, no matter how much she closed her eyes.

Help.

That word kept going through her mind as she rushed outside, sucking in the air, grateful that at least the sweet smell of the morning didn't taste like blood.

Oh God in heaven, who could have done something like that?

She didn't know, the worst part is she didn't have a clue. Lisbon remember how just a few days ago she'd thought the police were in over her head…now she was beginning to wonder if she was in the same spot they were in.

_"We need your help"_

_ "You need help?"_

_ "No, but if I do I'll get it."_

Help. She needed help.

Lisbon grabbed her phone from at her waist and punched in the number she knew so well. It rang twice before he answered.

"Jane…I need you."

* * *

><p>AN: Lisbon knows when she needs help and boy does she need it. Next chap Jane and the rest of the Austin team go to LA where they get a nice little reunion with Lisbon...and eventually Alex. Stay tuned, there will be quite a few twists in this little fic ;)


	2. Personal Dimensions

Disclaimer: I own nothing

A/N: PEople seemed interested in this little fic and I think people will love it even more once they see Jane with Alex! You'll get a glimpse inside my twisted mind here when you see the origins of this bad guy hehehe. But I know what you guys want more than anything.

* * *

><p>Chapter 2: Personal Dimensions<p>

The flight from Austin to Los Angeles was only half full, mostly due to the fact that it was the middle of the week. The team was sitting together on two rows of seats with various files to keep them busy. Jane was the only one without but he was obviously the most anxious, it was all he could do to keep from tapping his tray table with his hands. Abbott noticed eventually. "You can't make the plane go faster."

"You mean there's a way?" Jane replied with a bit of sarcasm.

"I'm surprised you're this excited," Abbott said, flipping through a report, "You know who will be there."

"Well I hope Lisbon is there, she called me."

"You know who I meant.

Jane shrugged. "We'll see what happens."

Abbott sighed. "You really think you can avoid Alex?"

"I think that we have a job to do and anything involving Alex is my business."

"Since when do you care about keeping things private?"

"I like to keep my personal life private, anyone else's is fair game."

Abbott looked away but Jane saw the corners of his mouth lift, he'd found that rather amusing. Of course there was a touch of truth in it, Jane could easily dish it out, he just didn't appreciate getting spoon fed his own medicine.

He was a bit worried about Lisbon; it wasn't normal for her to call him out of the blue for help, especially with a case. She liked to pretend that she was just as good at closing cases as he was. If she did know she needed help, it must be a really bad one. He knew it was a serial killer; she'd been able to disclose that much, everything else they were in the dark in until they got to Los Angeles.

This one had to be different, had to have done something that threw her off her game. It was the only way she would have admitting she needed his help. He didn't like the idea of getting involved with another sick and twisted game but he would do anything for Lisbon.

The plane touched down in Los Angeles and the great exodus began, the collected their bags, piled them in the rental cars and headed straight for the FBI office. When they got there, Jane surveyed the building with a critical eye; this was where Lisbon had been working for the past four years. There was nothing inherently wrong about the building except that it was in Los Angeles and not Austin. That was a flaw that was unforgivable.

Inside they were directed to the third floor and Lisbon was waiting outside of the elevator for them. He'd hung back deliberately, mostly to gage her reaction to him being there, he wanted to see if things were different now.

She hugged Cho first, grinning widely at him as she greeted him. She did the same in turn for Abbott and Wiley, though the former did look a bit uncomfortable. Then her eyes flicked to his and he knew she was a little nervous, but her expression was soft and warm too. There was no need to hide here, everyone here knew they'd been lovers once and had a child. "Hey you," she said giving him a sweet smile before they wrapped their arms around one another again.

It felt amazing to be holding her again, even if it was just a greeting and not a real loving embrace. She smelled the same, cinnamon hair and strong lithe body. He put his lips to her ear, pleased to notice the tension that went through her body. "Missed you."

He felt her smile against his neck and she leaned up to gently kiss his cheek. Was that her way of saying she missed him too? Or maybe a way to express she liked that he missed her. If he had to guess he'd say it was a bit of both. She stepped away, her green eyes shining with a soft happiness, which could only come from how happy she was to see him.

"I'm so glad you guys are here," she told them, "but trust me, we have our work cut out for us."

She led them down the hallway to a conference room, there were several folders waiting on the table. They each took a seat and Jane gave Wiley a withering glare when the man tried to take the seat next to Lisbon, he wisely let Jane claim that seat instead. She started handing out the folders. "There have been five people killed so far, one was a married couple which is what perked my interest."

She directed them to one file. "The first victim was Jason Fletcher, he was found dead in his home shot with an arrow." Jane opened it to find a rather gruesome scene of a man dead against the wall, arrow through his chest. Oddly enough there were several instruments stuck in the wall around him, a throwing axe, knives, even bullet holes. As if he'd been used for target practice.

"This was found with him," she said pointing out the calling card left at the scene. A simple white business card with the letter 'g' on it. That was what sparked something in him.

"Was the arrow tipped with a plant?"

Lisbon glanced at him, surprised. "Yes."

"Mistletoe?"

She nodded. "What are you thinking?" He didn't answer her question, not yet at least. He wanted to see the rest before explaining his theory. Lisbon gave him a glare that only made him smile; oh he'd missed this. "Then our second victim was Angelica Marsh, she was dragged to her death, probably by a bull. Then she was left in a spring with the same card."

"Elaborate," Abbott remarked, it was the kind of dry comment people said to hide their horror.

"Yes," Lisbon agreed, "and unusual, we can't find any connection between the two…and it only gets worse." She pointed to another file. "Jason and Hannah Winters were found in an abandoned home, they were in separate beds if you want to call them that. He was in a child sized bed and his limbs were cut off to make him fit."

"Jesus," Cho muttered.

"Hannah was found in very large bed, it was modified to be a rack as well. She was stretched until her tendons burst…also to fit the bed."

Everyone else was looking at this case in horror…Jane was thinking. He was horrified too, but he was calmly getting into this evil man's mind. Elaborate, creative, imaginative and very very insane. "And the last one?"

She paled a little and he knows right away that this was the one that scared her. "Vincent Tremain," she slid a folder to him. "He was found in his home, his ribs pulled out of his back and cut, his lungs pulled out over them to form wings."

"Are you serious?" Abbott asked, he couldn't believe something like that happened.

"I wish I wasn't."

Jane didn't say anything, just studied the macabre work in front of him. It was something that could put him off his lunch if he thought too hard about it. Thankfully he wasn't going to focus on what he saw but rather what he could infer from it. He felt Lisbon's gaze on him. "What do you see?"

He smiled now at her. "Well you have one sick bastard out there."

"Tell me something I can't figure out for myself."

He leaned back and gave her a lazy smile. "He has a real taste for mythology."

"Mythology?"

"Oh yes," Jane said, "and his calling card only confirms it." He held up the card. "The 'g'. It stands for god, the killer thinks of himself as a god among men and he kills people as the gods have done in their myths."

He pointed to the first one. "Fletcher is Baldr, the son of Odin. He was killed by Hoth who was directed by Loki, the devil in Norse mythology. Odin learned that Baldr's death would usher in the downfall of the gods so he had everything on earth swear not to kill him, except for mistletoe that was deemed too delicate to do any damage. Loki knew this, gave Hoth an arrow tipped with it and the blind god unwittingly killed his friend. That set Ragnarok in action, essentially the Viking apocalypse."

Lisbon was staring at him in awe and pride; she liked it because this was exactly why she'd asked him here. "He used that myth first, an announcement of his reign of terror."

Jane inclined his head. "Precisely."

"And the others?"

Jane pointed to Tremain's folder. "He drew from Norse mythology again. That was the blood eagle, a form of Viking justice. His insides ripped out to form an eagle's wings, if he remained silent then he was welcome into Valhalla."

"What about the Winters'?"

"The Winters' and Angelica Marsh, for that matter, come from Greek mythology. The Winters were treated to the Procustes treatment, he was the son of Poseidon who liked to make his guests fit the two beds he had. But he always made sure they were in one either too big or too small. As for Marsh, this is a mirroring of Dirke the greek queen who was punished for her treatment of Antiope, she was dragged by a bull and thrown in a stream for her ways."

Lisbon nodded, understanding what he was saying. "Do you know how he chooses his victims?"

"Since he likens himself to a god and his works are based on mythology, I imagine his victims are as well. Angelica Marsh might have mistreated his mother, who he likened to Antiope, perhaps the Winters' were poor guests? You'll want to try and tie our victims' misdeeds to him, he believes he is dolling out punishment like the gods."

Abbott turned to Wiley. "Wiley, start looking into our victims, see what skeletons are in their closets." Now they were in territory the man was comfortable with.

Lisbon nodded. "I will get my guys to do the same, between us we should find something of interest."

"I'd like to go see some of the scenes," Jane said, "might spy something amiss."

"I'll give you guys the addresses," Lisbon replied.

"Great," Abbott agreed, "you and Cho can go check them out."

He was a bit disappointed by that; he'd wanted Lisbon to go. But she was already talking to Abbott, dolling out what needed to be done. She was being her professional boss, figuring out what she needed to do. It was a harsh reminder that she wasn't his partner anymore. She and Abbott finished their conversation with an agreement and she stood up, leaving him to head for her office so she could finish her work and get her own teams in order. After all…she wasn't his anymore.

* * *

><p>Lisbon was damn proud of herself. She'd managed to be entirely professional with Jane. That was a high mark in her book, it had been and always would once they had crossed that bright red line from friendscoworkers to lovers…and then they'd fallen into an abyss. She didn't want to make things even more difficult and that wasn't easy. Jane always had a magnetic pull to him that she was almost powerless to resist, it was even harder now that she'd had a child with him because it meant she would never be able to sever ties with him. There was no going back since he was Alex's father, he always would be a part of her life no matter how small of a part he wanted to play.

She had to get through this case with him, then their lives would revert back to the familiar boundaries they were used to. That was all that they needed, a return to normalcy. As if the word normal could ever be applied to Patrick Jane.

And speak of the devil; suddenly he was at her office door. "Is there something you want?" She asked. Professional, be professional.

"I have some ideas on this case," Jane told her smoothly.

"Great, tell me."

"Not here."

Shit here he was back to his games. "What do you mean not here?"

"I mean we are leaving this building."

"I figured that much," Lisbon replied, "What I want to know is _why_?"

He just gave her that same Cheshire grin that could melt the insides of any woman who was within a five-mile radius…and she was no exception. "Well I see you haven't changed much at all," she muttered as she got to her feet and grabbed her things.

"Oh I've changed quite a bit."

"Not enough, you're still a jackass."

"I doubt that will ever change."

Lisbon couldn't help but smile then. "No I don't think it will." She followed him out of the building to one of the cars the team was renting for the case. She thought about pointing out that she had her own car here but she knew Jane would nix that, it seemed like he had something in mind and she was supposed to be following his whims.

But inside the confines of the car she lost whatever nerve she had. She didn't know what to say, how to even talk to Jane on a case now. It had been so long since they had done this, at the same time if felt like yesterday. Dammit why did it have to be so hard?

They pulled to a stop outside of a nice Greek restaurant and dumbly Lisbon realized they were nowhere near where she'd expected them to be. "This isn't one of the crime scenes."

"I never said were going there."

"You're telling me we have a lead here?"

"Nope."

Now she did glare at him. "Tell me what is going on right now."

He wasn't fazed at all. "I wanted to have lunch with you."

"And you didn't think to do the simple thing and ask?"

"You'd have said no."

"You don't know that!"

"Of course I do," Jane replied easily. "You barely looked at me during your presentation and then disappeared to your office right afterwards."

Well…he was right. "Why is it so important then?"

"I want to talk to you."

"You don't have to take me to lunch to talk to me," Lisbon reminded him, "we're talking right now."

He had to grin at that reply. "Yes but you wouldn't want to talk about personal things at your office, no, you're trying to keep things as professional as possible."

"Is that such a bad thing?"

"Right now it is," Jane said. Then he swiftly got out of the car and opened the door for her, like a gentlemen. She knew he wasn't one…but he could play the part when it suited him. Wordlessly she got out of the car and together they walked into the restaurant. She'd never been there before but it smelled good and she and Jane both shared a love for Mediterranean cuisine.

They are ushered to a table by a window with lots of light. For a moment they glance at the menus while she sips some water. "I've never been here before."

"You'll like it."

"You know this place?"

Jane gave her a raised eyebrow. "I didn't live too far from Los Angeles once upon a time."

Shit she'd forgotten about that, Malibu was a short drive away. Hell he'd probably come to the city all of the time for clients. And here she'd thought she was getting away from him by moving here when in fact he knew the city better than she did. She shook her head and took another sip of water, determined to change the subject off of his past. "What did you want to talk about?"

"Well we have a lot of personal matters to discuss."

Lisbon looked down at the white tablecloth now. "Alex is fine," her voice low and soft. She wanted him to care, but she didn't want him to see her hope.

"Yes I assumed as much, you would have told me otherwise."

And with that her tiny light of hope was gone. He said it so simply, like they were talking about a pet or a house she was watching, not their child. Lisbon gritted her teeth and mentally chastised herself for even thinking that it would be otherwise. "Then what else is there to talk about?"

He gave her an annoyed look now. "Lisbon, we've known each other over fifteen years and yet you still think we should keep our lives professional? I thought that went out the window when we became lovers."

Her face flushed at the word 'lovers'. "For only a few months," she reminded him.

"And then you had our child."

"Which we've already discussed."

"No we haven't, we've merely established that she is in good health. We'll talk about Alex in more detail later."

And just like that, her hope was back.

The waitress came back and tried flirting with Jane while she took their orders. No surprise there, any woman would want to try to get a piece of him. But Jane ignored her, much to the woman's dismay and Lisbon's secret delight. He wasn't hers anymore but that didn't mean she liked watching women throw themselves at him. Finally she leaves with their orders and Lisbon is able to ask him again. "All right, then what do you want to talk about?"

Jane leaned back in his chair to study her with an unreadable expression on her face. "How are you? Still in the honeymoon phase of your marriage?"

She froze immediately. Goddamn him. "My marriage is none of your business."

"I was merely asking a friendly question," Jane said innocently, "Is something wrong?"

"Oh cut the crap, you know damn well we got divorced."

"What? Oh no, how terrible. I thought you were so right for each other," Jane said in a deadpan. His barely restrained smile proving his tone, he didn't mean a single word.

Lisbon glared at him, seething now at him. "Who told you? Cho?"

Jane shook his head. "No, it's all over the office in Austin, you know too many people there."

She blushed, embarrassed that her personal life was still a gossipy subject all the way in Texas. "And you want to congratulate yourself for being right?"

"No," he told her earnestly. "I merely want to know if you are all right."

She looked into his eyes to see if he was teasing her but she saw nothing but concern. That softened most of her anger. "I'm fine," she assured him, "really, I didn't even have to get over him…I just didn't care that much."

"And yet you married him?"

"Look, we don't have to go into why I did it, let's just both readily admit that it was probably the stupidest thing I've ever done."

His smile answered for her. "I'm not going to argue with that." But Jane wasn't quite done yet. "Did you really catch him with his pants down?"

Lisbon blushed again and nodded. "I could tell something was up, you know how we've seen the signs a million times? So I followed Ryan and caught him with her. Then went home, packed his things and when he got home I told him he was leaving. That was it."

"I'll bet he protested."

"I wasn't willing to hear the excuses, the bastard cheated two months after the wedding and probably before. I may have been stupid but at least I learned from that mistake."

Jane smiled and shook his head. "This is the part where I could say that I warned you."

"Yes you did but you were a jack ass about it."

"Jackass or not I was right."

She glared at him. "This was my choice, my decision, and I decided to disregard an obviously half-assed jealous insight, whether or not it was right is irrelevant."

"The fact that I was right seems to imply it wasn't 'half-assed'."

"But you were jealous."

Jane looked away and spotted their waitress. "I believe our food is coming."

Typical Jane, avoid the feelings when she guessed them spot on. She wished he'd admit it but that wasn't him. No, he would hid his feelings until the last minute…or never tell her at all. But he was right, their food was here. They both dug in, enjoying the Greek chicken and potatoes immensely.

"I'd look into a library," Jane said in between bites.

"What?"

"For a book on mythology, you're going to need it."

She frowned at him. "I'll keep that in mind." At the moment she was trying to recall where the closest library was and if she even had a card to it. "He has to be educated, at least somewhat."

Jane shrugged. "Could be a scholar, could be self taught, it's hard to say."

"He doesn't have a pattern to his victims."

"His pattern is in the mythology, somehow he is matching them to the people in the myths. They have a personal connection to him, it might be just an indirect connection, but it is it there."

"It's not going to be easy to find."

He nodded his head. "But he's a showman, deep down he wants us to chase him, the closer we get the more excited he will become."

"So it's a game to him."

"Of course, he's just trying to prove he's smarter than us."

"Sounds familiar," she remarked. By the dark look in Jane's he caught her meaning too. They had spent a long decade trying to catch Red John; playing more games with serial killers was not something they looked forward to. But this wasn't Red John, that made Lisbon feel a lot better, she was certain she wouldn't have to deal with another killer the likes of him. Only one came up in a lifetime.

"This one is sloppier," Jane pointed out, "his victims have a personal tie to him, it means that the connection is there and eventually he'll slip up. And soon I'm betting."

"Yeah well I hope we don't have to find another victim to get there."

They settled into silence again, enjoying their food for a few more minutes. Jane took a sip of water and set it back down. "Now, tell me about Alex."

Lisbon flushed. "What do you want to know?"

"Anything, everything."

She couldn't hide the smile; it was good that he wanted to know so much. "Well you call every week, you know how she's doing in gymnastics and preschool."

"Tell me."

Lisbon laughed. "She's great, always eager to run and tumble on the mats. She even jumped up on the balance beam and wants to do the bars next, she's entirely fearless." Lisbon smirked. "She gets her athleticism from me."

"I'll concede that gladly," Jane replied, "but her intuitiveness has to be from me."

"She's smarter than you," Lisbon said.

"I have no doubts," he agreed. He tapped his fingers on the table in thought. "How did she take what happened with Ryan?"

Her face darkened at that question. "Okay, it was harder for her. She liked Ryan and didn't understand why he wasn't going to live with us anymore."

"But you did explain that he was just her stepfather."

"Of course I did and she knows that, just because I married Ryan didn't mean she ever stopped wanting to see you." Jane didn't speak for a while, he accepted that guilt. She wanted him to feel it, it was what he deserved. Their daughter wanted to see him because she never did, only a handful of times since birth. Lisbon looked down at her half-eaten food and sighed. "Jane…I don't know what to tell her."

"Tell her what?"

She finally met his eyes. "Do you want me to tell her that you are here?"

He paused again and she knew he was unsure of that answer. But to her surprise he finally did speak. "I have no idea."

Well it wasn't a 'no'.

"Then what do you want?"

"I'm not sure," Jane told her, "let's just play it by ear for now."

"Are you afraid?"

"Yes."

She was surprised by his admission. "She doesn't hate you."

"It's not her hate I'm afraid of, or even her really."

Lisbon studied him for a moment. "Maybe if you see her, you'll now."

Jane considered that. "Maybe you're right."

He motioned for the waitress to bring the check and Lisbon knew that the conversation was over. She decided to chalk it up in the victory column, at least a partial one. He hadn't said no to seeing Alex and he'd actually wanted to talk about her, that was a big step up from where they used to be.

But far from where it should.

* * *

><p>Jane took Lisbon back to the FBI office rather pleased with the conversation they'd had. They'd cleared a lot of the air and he was especially pleased to know that she wasn't broken up over the divorce, in fact she readily admitted to simply not caring enough about her ex husband. He liked that idea very much, almost as much as the idea of her not making the mistake in marrying the bastard in the first place. But that couldn't be changed.<p>

He walked Lisbon back to her office and they both spotted Cho with a few books under his arm. "Where did you get those?" Lisbon asked, they both saw that the books were on mythology.

"Library."

"You got a library card?"

"I have this," Cho said, showing his FBI ID.

Lisbon colored and Jane couldn't help but smile. He had a feeling she'd been thinking about getting a library card strictly for this case, she hadn't even thought about how her government ID could open doors.

But Cho was quickly distracted by something else…or rather someone.

That someone was a tall brunette wearing a skintight dress that just managed to cover her thighs…barely. She was a walking piece of sin that looked like she belonged inside a five star hotel trying to weasel away as much cash out of a fat sucker than in the walls of the FBI. Who was she and why was she heading their way?

"Yo, Agent Lisbon," she said with a hint of a tough girl accent, as if she had a background on the streets. "Are you done chatting with your john or is he available for someone else to try out?"

The wink she sent him actually startled him. He was used to women trying something and he could usually blow them off…but he was a bit overwhelmed. He looked to Lisbon for help but she was biting her lip and her eyes were sparkling with mischief. What was going on here?

The other woman gave him another smile. "What's wrong, baby, don't tell me you're scared?"

Jane looked from one woman to the other and finally managed to find his voice. "I want to say that you are a high class call girl that is an informant except Lisbon here is barely controlling her laughter which makes me think I'm missing some very important information."

Now both women started laughing and Jane was certain he'd been right. It took a few moments for Lisbon to get her composure, and she was still giggling when she made the introductions. "Jane, this is Agent Lena Copewell, Lena you know this is Jane otherwise why the performance?"

Lena laughed again. "That was fun, so glad I finally got the chance to do that."

"She's been waiting to see if she can trick you," Lisbon explained, "call it a test of her skills."

"Well she very nearly did," Jane admitted, "it was you who gave her away."

Lisbon scowled while Lena grinned. "Glad to know I was up to snuff, but if you do something stupid I can drop kick you, don't let this skirt fool you."

He raised his eyebrows at her comment and watched as she walked away with Cho staring after her. Lisbon noticed. "See something you like, Cho?"

Cho looked over at Lisbon and gave her a look before walking away. Jane turned around and grinned at Lisbon. "I think he's smitten."

"He and all of the straight men in the building."

"Well she certainly is something else."

Lisbon shrugged. "That's what happens when your dad is a Navy SEAL, your mom tries to make you a beauty queen and you have the acting skills of Merel Streepe."

"You become an FBI agent that goes undercover."

"And gets to beat up the bad guys."

"Something tells me that is the important part," Jane said with a smile.

"It is," Lisbon agreed. Then her smile softened. "She's a good friend and she loves Alex."

Jane smiled back at her. "That's good to know."

There was an awkward lull as they both ran out of things to do. Lisbon chose to end their get-together. "Well I have work to do and so do you, you're not here just to ogle Lena."

"I wasn't ogling, Cho was the one ogling."

"Sure."

Jane grinned. "There's only one woman I would ogle."

She blushed now fiercely, oh she got his meaning. "Yes…well…I still have work so I'll see you later." She scurried into her office to get away from him and he was proud of that. He knew she was nervous but that meant she probably still cared.

* * *

><p>The first day with the team was usually the slowest, they were playing catch up with the information and she was trying to find a break in the case in the meantime…but she knew that could only come from Jane. He'd already helped, he'd figured out the pattern in the cases, even if it didn't give them much insight into who the killer was at the moment, it meant that the connection was there they just had to uncover it.<p>

But there was plenty for everyone to do and the hours began to tick by. Lisbon started getting nervous the later it got, soon enough she'd have to go pick up Alex from daycare and that meant either taking her home or bringing her to the office, neither option appealed to Lisbon. Going home with Alex meant leaving the office before the job was done, but bringing Alex to work meant that Alex would see Jane and that opened up an entirely new can of worms.

Lisbon stared at the clock mentally listing the pros and cons of each option when Abbott softly knocked on her door. "I like the office," he told her.

"Thanks," she said, "what can I do for you?"

"Just letting you know that Wiley is going over the Winters' background. The husband made a few enemies in his business ventures, maybe our killer is one of them."

"It's worth a shot," Lisbon replied, "Can he cross check them to see if any of the other victims have ties to them?"

"He's already working on that."

She smiled. "Sounds like you guys are ahead of the game."

"Well you know we don't slack off in Austin, unlike our friends in L.A."

Lisbon smirked at him with mock annoyance. "Oh they don't slack off, they just are happier that their boss isn't a slave driver like our Austin counterpart."

It was all in good fun between them and soon they both smiled at each other in a jovial manner. "Are you guys still looking over the reports?" Lisbon asked, she glanced at the clock biting her lip.

"We still are looking at the Marsh case and are waiting for some of the notes on Fletcher," Abbott asked, noting her demeanor. "Is there somewhere you have to be?"

She colored a little. "Alex's daycare closes in twenty minutes."

"Well then you better go pick her up."

"You think you won't need me for the rest of the evening," she asked, she didn't like not being there if they had questions or concerns.

"Or you could bring her here," Abbott pointed out. "We won't mind."

She shrugged. "I'm sure you could call me if something came up."

"But it would be better if you were here in person," Abbott suggested, "Seriously, just bring her by. I haven't seen her since she was an infant, it'd be nice for us all to meet her again."

Lisbon eyed him slyly. "What game are you playing?"

"Nothing," Abbott replied, "Just thinking it would be nice for some of us to see her."

Some of them…meaning Jane. Oh she knew this well. This was the same man who'd pressured Jane into finally admitting his feelings for her, it appeared he was still trying to play matchmaker. But this time he was trying to unite a father with his daughter.

"You are very sweet," she told him with a soft smile. "But I don't think it will do much to change things."

Abbott held up his hands. "I don't know what you are talking about. I just want to see your little girl, if anyone else does…well so be it."

"Oh really, that's all?"

"That's right."

Lisbon rolled her eyes and packed up her things and grabbed her keys. "I'm wise to your meddling," she told him with a grin and then gave him a small peck on the cheek, which only made him grin.

"Going to pick her up?" Abbott asked.

"Yep," she said as she headed for the door. "I'll see you in twenty minutes."

She knew he was grinning as she left, he was happy to win this battle. Well, she'd committed herself to this…now she could only hope it would turn out okay.

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

Alex greeted her mother with a very cheerful, "Mommy!" once Lisbon showed up at the daycare center to pick her up. She hugged her daughter tight, loving this greeting more and more each day

"Well come on, munchkin," she said, and they headed out to the car, "Tell me about your day."

Alex was all too happy to chatter about her preschool and then daycare, lots of fun times learning and then coloring with her friends. Her little girl was so smart, already in an advanced age class, she'd be ready for kindergarten a year early then most kids, that was something Lisbon couldn't help but take pride in.

"Are we going home, Mommy?" Alex asked, but she knew the answer already from the familiar street.

"No, baby, we're going back to Mommy's office."

"Okay, will I see Lena?"

"Maybe," Lisbon replied. She wasn't sure where her friend was at the moment, still on another undercover assignment. But that wasn't the part she was concerned about, it was explaining to Alex who was waiting at the office.

Lisbon didn't tell her right away, not until they pulled into the parking lot and there really was no turning back. She sighed and got out of the car to help her daughter out of her car seat. Once Alex was standing on the pavement, Lisbon put both hands on her shoulders. "There is something I need to tell you." Alex looked up at her mother with eyes wiser than her years. "Some friends I used to work with are here to help me with a case…and it's important you know this because your daddy is one of them."

Her little girl's eyes widened and she gasped. "Daddy is here."

She nodded. "Yes, Daddy is here. I just want you to be prepared for this, we are working on catching a very bad man so we have a lot of work to do."

But Alex caught her real meaning. "Daddy isn't here to see me."

Shit, she hadn't wanted to upset her. "Daddy is here to help Mommy catch a bad man," Lisbon told her, "But he is going to see you, he wanted to know how you were and what you were doing, he asked me a lot of questions about you today."

"He did?" Alex asked, now she was feeling better.

"Yes he did," Lisbon told her, "and I think he's going to be very happy to see you." Oh she hoped she hadn't just lied to her daughter.

Alex was surprisingly subdued as they rode the elevator up to her floor while Lisbon's heart hammered in her chest. She hadn't even had time to warn Jane that they were coming; she couldn't even imagine how he would react to seeing Alex. Just that afternoon he'd admitted that he had no idea if he wanted to see her or not!

She held Alex's hand as they made their way down the hallway to her office, passing by the open bullpen where the rest of the team was working. It was Abbott who spotted Alex first and he immediately walked over with a big smile. "Well what do we have here?" Cho and Wiley looked up to see what had caught his attention, they were just as happy to see her daughter as well. But where was Jane?

Abbott walked over to say hello. "I think we have a little girl here on the loose." Alex giggled and Lisbon couldn't help but grin at that sound.

"Alex, this is Agent Abbott, an old friend of Mommy's."

"Hello," Alex said sweetly.

Abbott gave her a beautiful smile. "I remember when you were just this tiny little thing your mother brought by the office, look at how big you've gotten now."

Alex giggled again, blushing a little but beaming at the attention. The other two members of the team came forward, both looking pleased. Cho was even smiling! "This is Agent Cho and Agent Wiley, also old friends of Mommy's. Cho even worked with me for years before I moved to Texas."

"You look like your mom," Cho pointed out. "That's a good thing."

"Thanks," Lisbon said, giving Cho an eyeroll. That was as good of a compliment as she would get from him.

Then slowly Jane stepped into view. She didn't know where he'd been hiding but there he was and all eyes turned to him. It was obvious not even his teammates knew how he would react…and they were all waiting to see what he would do next.

But his eyes were on Alex, focused and serious. She couldn't tell if he was happy to see her or not. That was what worried her the most.

"Hello, Alex," Jane said softly, his voice was low.

"Hi, Daddy," Alex replied shyly, she unconsciously moved closer to her mother, holding her hand tight.

But then Jane gave her a big smile and gestured with his right hand. "Come here."

Alex grinned then and immediately broke from her mother to rush over to her father's open arms. Jane knelt down and pulled her up against him into a big hug, an exaggerated groan once she held him close as tightly as she could.

He stroked her soft hair with his hand, holding her tighter for a bit and breathing in her scent, his eyes closed as he savored it. Jane just held her for a long moment before pulling her back a little. "Let me take a look at you," he said and he looked directly into her eyes. Jane looked her over top to bottom and back again, then reached up to stroke her face and tuck her hair back. "Beautiful, absolutely beautiful," he said to her. Alex grinned, she loved any compliment from her father, enjoying the tender affection she'd craved. "You, my dear," Jane said, tapping her nose, "are perfect." Then he pulled her into a hug again.

He held her for another long minute before giving her a kiss on the head and pulling her back to look into her eyes. "Now, did Mommy tell you why I was here?"

Alex nodded. "Yes."

"Well then you know that I have a lot of work to do. But you have a job too, you have to stay with Mommy and look out for her, Mommy has a tendency to work too hard and that's not good is it?" Alex giggled and shook her head. "So you need to make sure Mommy has a little fun all right? Can you do that?"

"Yes!"

"Good," Jane said and hugged her again before kissing her head one last time. "Now go with Mommy and don't forget to say goodbye before you leave."

"Okay, Daddy," Alex said. She was so happy and her smile was absolutely breathtaking.

She scampered over to her mother to hold her hand while Lisbon tried to pretend that she didn't have any tears in her eyes. "You heard, Daddy," Lisbon said, "let's go." She caught Jane's eye as they walked away and he was still watching them leave as he rose back to his feet.

The rest of the team watched him for while until he finally said. "What? We have work to do don't we?" as if nothing amiss had happened at all.

So they decided to pretend nothing momentous had happened…but they were all thinking about it. Especially Jane.

* * *

><p>AN: Well what did you think? I loved this scene with Alex. It's confession time though, this entire fic is from a dream I had where Lisbon had an ex husband but a baby with Jane...that's why I broke one of my rules and had Lisbon actually marry this guy heheh. Wait until Jane and the ex meet...


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